Butterfly Blues
@choving.bsky.social
Wildlife ecologist, adaptation scientist, complex adaptive systems modeler, Cassandra-type prophet (apparently), avid gardener and hiker. Personal account; views are my own.
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Butterfly Blues
@choving.bsky.social
· Jun 9
Starter packs compilations are like personal home book shelves. An expression of one's interests, personality, what I read, what I find important. I hope these help you find great content. More in the comments. 1/: go.bsky.app/FNYZ61y
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
I've waited 3 years to make this post
December 30, 2025 at 3:14 PM
I've waited 3 years to make this post
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
You probably heard the US admin is threatening to break up the National Center for Atmospheric Research: but did you know they already froze funding for the 9 regional Climate Science Adaptation Centers? From tracking invasives to helping tribes with drought, here's why the CASCs matter ⬇️
From invasive species tracking to water security – what’s lost with federal funding cuts at US Climate Adaptation Science Centers
The people who manage America’s aquifers, wetlands, shorelines and recreation areas rely on federal science as they face new and rising risks in a changing climate.
theconversation.com
December 29, 2025 at 12:02 PM
You probably heard the US admin is threatening to break up the National Center for Atmospheric Research: but did you know they already froze funding for the 9 regional Climate Science Adaptation Centers? From tracking invasives to helping tribes with drought, here's why the CASCs matter ⬇️
Knives Out rickroll
Just watched the new Knives Out and I think it's really important you know that the scene in the Seminary's Gym is filmed in the same place Rick Astley filmed the music video for Never Gonna Give You Up.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
I saw the window tracery and immediately made my friends pause the film so I could tell them.
December 29, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Knives Out rickroll
AI is about as accurate as someone who sounds smart because they are good at improv that sounds like it could be true. But because truth is often stranger than fiction, that person is often wrong. Like this type of person, the system is rewarded by popularity, not accuracy.
December 29, 2025 at 2:52 PM
AI is about as accurate as someone who sounds smart because they are good at improv that sounds like it could be true. But because truth is often stranger than fiction, that person is often wrong. Like this type of person, the system is rewarded by popularity, not accuracy.
Perhaps this dates me, but I remember listening to that show when I was a graduate student.
"What our panel from 25 years ago did not predict is the attack on science by those who oppose vaccinations, climate deniers, conspiracy theorists and opponents to clean energy production."
25 years ago, we imagined what science would be like in 2025. What we got right — and wrong | CBC Radio
On October 14, 2000, we aired our 25th anniversary show, where we imagined what science would look like in the distant year 2025. Now, we look back and see how our predictions fared.
www.cbc.ca
December 27, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Perhaps this dates me, but I remember listening to that show when I was a graduate student.
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
My entire existence has been summed up in a t-shirt . . .
December 25, 2025 at 8:22 PM
My entire existence has been summed up in a t-shirt . . .
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
To my office, practising arithmetique alone and making an end of last night’s book with great content, and so home to supper and to bed.
December 25, 2025 at 11:57 PM
To my office, practising arithmetique alone and making an end of last night’s book with great content, and so home to supper and to bed.
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
Merry Holidays and Happy #InverteFest !!
Hope everyone is having a tentalicious time today ✨🐙
#inverts 🦐🐞
Hope everyone is having a tentalicious time today ✨🐙
#inverts 🦐🐞
December 25, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Merry Holidays and Happy #InverteFest !!
Hope everyone is having a tentalicious time today ✨🐙
#inverts 🦐🐞
Hope everyone is having a tentalicious time today ✨🐙
#inverts 🦐🐞
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
Day 25 of my 2025 Favorites: the most festive of boys
Phidippus cardinalis. Just a lovely little velvet ant mimic lad. That red is so striking in the sandy scrub. ❤️
#EmotionalSupportSpood #InverteFest
Merry Whatever-The-Hell-You're-Doing-Today Day to you all
Phidippus cardinalis. Just a lovely little velvet ant mimic lad. That red is so striking in the sandy scrub. ❤️
#EmotionalSupportSpood #InverteFest
Merry Whatever-The-Hell-You're-Doing-Today Day to you all
December 25, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Day 25 of my 2025 Favorites: the most festive of boys
Phidippus cardinalis. Just a lovely little velvet ant mimic lad. That red is so striking in the sandy scrub. ❤️
#EmotionalSupportSpood #InverteFest
Merry Whatever-The-Hell-You're-Doing-Today Day to you all
Phidippus cardinalis. Just a lovely little velvet ant mimic lad. That red is so striking in the sandy scrub. ❤️
#EmotionalSupportSpood #InverteFest
Merry Whatever-The-Hell-You're-Doing-Today Day to you all
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
December 13, 2025 at 4:37 PM
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
There is an unfortunate error in this newly published @globalchangebio.bsky.social paper.
The caption for this image reads "upper panel with dragon icon symbolising all tetrapod" but this is incorrect. That is either a wyvern (with two wings and two legs) or it is not a tetrapod (6 limbs).
The caption for this image reads "upper panel with dragon icon symbolising all tetrapod" but this is incorrect. That is either a wyvern (with two wings and two legs) or it is not a tetrapod (6 limbs).
December 24, 2025 at 2:51 AM
There is an unfortunate error in this newly published @globalchangebio.bsky.social paper.
The caption for this image reads "upper panel with dragon icon symbolising all tetrapod" but this is incorrect. That is either a wyvern (with two wings and two legs) or it is not a tetrapod (6 limbs).
The caption for this image reads "upper panel with dragon icon symbolising all tetrapod" but this is incorrect. That is either a wyvern (with two wings and two legs) or it is not a tetrapod (6 limbs).
As in South Africa, also in Michigan. I have had these same arguments in favor of savanna preservation and restoration over tree planting in what were incorrectly classified as "understocked forests."
"Bond’s work leaves behind an inconvenient lesson for an era of climate urgency: that speed is not a substitute for understanding, and that good intentions, applied without care, can erase ancient worlds as efficiently as neglect." A beautiful tribute to William Bond. Forever missed by many.
William Bond, defender of grasslands
In recent years, one of the loudest ideas in environmental policy has been that trees are the planet’s universal remedy. Plant enough of them, in enough places, and carbon will be soaked up, water wil...
www.butlernature.com
December 23, 2025 at 12:31 PM
As in South Africa, also in Michigan. I have had these same arguments in favor of savanna preservation and restoration over tree planting in what were incorrectly classified as "understocked forests."
Long thread on energy policy, and well worth the 49 posts.
47. As Amory Lovins has said for years, no one wants a lump of coal, or a barrel of oil. All we want is a hot shower and a cold beer. And if we can get that heat and light and chilling without paying for (or burning) fuel, we're all happier... with one notable exception.
December 21, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Long thread on energy policy, and well worth the 49 posts.
There is a west Michigan vs east Michigan rivalry, an MSU vs UM rivalry. On both counts, I enjoy laughing at Ann Arbor. This is priceless. The comments.
I've never lived so close to a What Are We Even Doing Here real estate listing, and I am here, gifting you this experience, make sure to open the pictures
www.redfin.com/MI/Ann-Arbor...
www.redfin.com/MI/Ann-Arbor...
414 S Main St #10, Ann Arbor, MI 48104 - 3 beds/3.5 baths
(SW Michigan MLS) For Sale: 3 beds, 3.5 baths ∙ 5000 sq. ft. ∙ 414 S Main St #10, Ann Arbor, MI 48104 ∙ $7,000,000 ∙ MLS# 25062388 ∙ This Downtown Ann Arbor penthouse stands among the finest residence...
www.redfin.com
December 21, 2025 at 2:33 AM
There is a west Michigan vs east Michigan rivalry, an MSU vs UM rivalry. On both counts, I enjoy laughing at Ann Arbor. This is priceless. The comments.
Am I going to comfort watch The Big Short? No, I am not. Do I find much needed comfort in that last line of the essay? Yes, yes, I do.
Tonight, the December Comfort Watch is The Big Short: a tale of a few people seeing an imminent global economic collapse that anyone could have seen coming, but didn't, mostly because they didn't want to.
whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/19/t...
whatever.scalzi.com/2025/12/19/t...
The December Comfort Watches 2025, Day Nineteen: The Big Short
There was, to be clear, nothing very comforting at all about the 2008 global economic crisis. It was a deeply messed-up time, and even if one was not in danger of losing one’s home in the mes…
whatever.scalzi.com
December 20, 2025 at 1:20 PM
Am I going to comfort watch The Big Short? No, I am not. Do I find much needed comfort in that last line of the essay? Yes, yes, I do.
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
Cooperation is a universal feature of complex systems, from the origins of life and microbiomes to societies. What universal patterns can be found in these systems? Here's our new @pnas.org paper. @jordipinero.bsky.social @artemyte.bsky.social @sfiscience.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10....
December 19, 2025 at 6:44 PM
Cooperation is a universal feature of complex systems, from the origins of life and microbiomes to societies. What universal patterns can be found in these systems? Here's our new @pnas.org paper. @jordipinero.bsky.social @artemyte.bsky.social @sfiscience.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10....
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
Me, submerged headfirst in Brie: Shu’ up, ’s medishinal.
abcnews.go.com/Health/high-...
I feel like I have friends on here who need this information, immediately.
I feel like I have friends on here who need this information, immediately.
High-fat cheese, cream linked to lower risk of dementia: Study
People who regularly ate higher-fat cheese and cream had a lower risk of dementia over 25 years, while low-fat dairy and other dairy foods showed no clear association.
abcnews.go.com
December 19, 2025 at 11:45 PM
Me, submerged headfirst in Brie: Shu’ up, ’s medishinal.
Going with number 3 movie for that year. Looks like 2026 will be another year of doomscrolling... or maybe another re-watch of the Loki 2 series.
December 20, 2025 at 1:32 AM
Going with number 3 movie for that year. Looks like 2026 will be another year of doomscrolling... or maybe another re-watch of the Loki 2 series.
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
Join us on this #BugBanterPodcast, to hear from two incredible artists behind the studio Ink Dwell, Jane Kim & Thayer Walker, about how they use their art to connect people with conservation! 🦋🖌️
Audio & transcript 📻 xerces.org/bug-banter/w...
Video w/ captions 📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRB0...
Audio & transcript 📻 xerces.org/bug-banter/w...
Video w/ captions 📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRB0...
Walls That Speak: Inspiring Conservation Through Art | Bug Banter Podcast
When science and art meet they create a nexus where inspiration and education combine to create impactful outcomes. From illustrated ID guides to building-sized murals, art has been interwoven into sc...
xerces.org
December 18, 2025 at 6:54 PM
Join us on this #BugBanterPodcast, to hear from two incredible artists behind the studio Ink Dwell, Jane Kim & Thayer Walker, about how they use their art to connect people with conservation! 🦋🖌️
Audio & transcript 📻 xerces.org/bug-banter/w...
Video w/ captions 📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRB0...
Audio & transcript 📻 xerces.org/bug-banter/w...
Video w/ captions 📺 www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRB0...
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
this was a huge project - i interviewed dozens of americans who feared the worst from the start of the trump era, i wanted to understand why it was obvious to some, but not others
i'd like to thank everyone who participated
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
i'd like to thank everyone who participated
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
The Americans Who Saw All This Coming—but Were Ignored and Maligned
Call them the Cassandras: the people—mostly not white and male—who smelled the fascism all over Trump from jump street. Why were they “alarmists,” and how did “anti-alarmism” become cool?
newrepublic.com
December 18, 2025 at 11:28 AM
this was a huge project - i interviewed dozens of americans who feared the worst from the start of the trump era, i wanted to understand why it was obvious to some, but not others
i'd like to thank everyone who participated
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
i'd like to thank everyone who participated
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
In this article, just out, I argue that scientists have a crucial role in the science-policy interface: keep making questions, especially those whose answers decision-makers don't know they want to know, or know they do not want to know.
Here's the link:
journals.plos.org/sustainabili...
Here's the link:
journals.plos.org/sustainabili...
Three kinds of questions for scientists in intergovernmental policy
journals.plos.org
December 17, 2025 at 6:18 PM
In this article, just out, I argue that scientists have a crucial role in the science-policy interface: keep making questions, especially those whose answers decision-makers don't know they want to know, or know they do not want to know.
Here's the link:
journals.plos.org/sustainabili...
Here's the link:
journals.plos.org/sustainabili...
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
What infuriates me too is all those silly "anti-woke" science people screeching about Lysenko because of, you know, pronouns, who will be silent on this. (The piece below was in response to one of those.)
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Science Is Political, and We Must Deal with It
pubs.acs.org
December 17, 2025 at 9:09 AM
What infuriates me too is all those silly "anti-woke" science people screeching about Lysenko because of, you know, pronouns, who will be silent on this. (The piece below was in response to one of those.)
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
Reposted by Butterfly Blues
shot and chaser: marcusolang.substack.com/p/it-started...
It started with one elegant word: “Jidishi.”
Of language and the illusion of "intelligence".
marcusolang.substack.com
December 16, 2025 at 10:32 AM
shot and chaser: marcusolang.substack.com/p/it-started...